Page 94 of Us Dark Few

I hope my fears have been misplaced, but we must prepare. There are very few in Apollo you can trust. Based on our calculations, the resources in Apollo should last for about 300 years. The surface air will be breathable before then. If there comes the point where resources decline, and we still don’t go to the surface, then you must find a way to leave Apollo. Find the truth about Project Helix. That is our only hope. Even if this happens long after you’re gone, you must pass this knowledge down through our family.

Let them know the path starts at Prometheus.

- Your loving grandfather, Timothy Talbot

Khalani silently closed the book, a sudden coldness enveloping her like a cloak. All she could focus on was the rise and fall of her chest. Her hands trembled as she handed the journal back to Winnie.

“Do you see it now?” Winnie asked, looking deep into her eyes.

“I…I need a second.”

Her breath hitched as she stood and started pacing the room. Her face tingled, and her vision grew blurry. Project Helix, Apollo, declining resources, Genesis, Prometheus…all parts of a puzzle splayed out, and she could scarcely fit the pieces together.

“The journal doesn’t say anything about what Project Helix is?” Khalani asked Winnie.

Winnie shook her head. “No. But it must have been something great, something that could save us all. And if what your friend said about the crop failure is true, then Timothy was right, and we need to leave Apollo. We need to find Project Helix.”

Khalani placed both palms against her face, her mind spinning. “But Timothy said the resources would last until the surface air is survivable again. The surface is filled with radiation, Winnie. What if he was wrong?”

“Winnie believes Timothy. What if Apollo’s been lying to us about the surface? Don’t you feel the wrongness too?”

She did feel something. Like the weight of knowledge would bury her alive.

She learned so much in the past few days…it was too much. Her world was turning upside down, and she was spinning along with it. Questions shone on every corner, and no answers were in sight.

“Winnie, they showed us the dead bodies of the Genesis workers. The burns, their skin deteriorating. They died from radiation poisoning.”

“What if it was all a show?” Winnie exclaimed. “To make us believe that the surface was still too dangerous?”

Khalani heaved a sigh and moved toward Winnie, placing a gentle hand on either side of her shoulders.

“Winnie, I know you want to believe this. I know you want to believe Timothy Talbot. Let’s just say you’re right, and Apollo has been lying to us the whole time, and some mysterious force wants us to die. Where would we even start? He said the path starts at Prometheus, but do you know where Prometheus is? We don’t even know if it’s a person, a place…” she trailed off, searching for a sign of recognition in Winnie’s gaze, an acknowledgment of how crazy it all sounded.

Winnie’s eyes blazed with hope. “Winnie doesn’t know, but don’t you want to discover the truth? We can escape to the surface and figure it out together! We’re family, right?”

Khalani glanced heavenward, pressure overwhelming her.She loved Winnie but could not watch her walk the path to self-destruction.

“Wearefamily, Winnie. But listen to yourself. This isn’t a plan. This issuicide. If escape was even possible, we’d be aimlessly wandering a barren wasteland. That’s all the surface is now. We’d die in a few days. But we do have a plan. We contact Hermes, and I’m sure they will send us help. That is our smartest move right now, Winnie. Ouronlymove.”

Winnie’s face transformed from conviction to despair. “Winnie hoped she could trust you.”

“You can trust me!” Khalani insisted. “I’m only looking out for you.”

Winnie turned her head and a stray tear ran down her face, piercing Khalani like shards of glass. “We’re not meant to stay underground, Khalani. We were meant for more. Winnie knows this, but you…you don’t want to leave the puppet show.”

Her stomach tumbled like she was being gutted from the inside out.

“Winnie,” she whispered.

The afternoon alarm pierced the air. “It’s time to leave.” Winnie turned her back on her.

“Winnie…we can fix this.”

“Not today, Khalani. Maybe not ever. Please, just go,” Winnie’s voice broke.

Guilt and regret mounted like spires on her chest, but too many words had been spoken, and none of them could be snatched back.

She turned and left the library, shoulders hunched like her body wanted to cave in and fade away.

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